September 20, 2021
Biking on the Lake
When we added VT to our itinerary Laura and I were excited about visiting a ride we have done twice before. The Island Line is a truly unique 27 mile out and back ride. The Island Line is also known as the Burlington Bike Path, Colchester Causeway, etc., but for us it will always be the Island Line.
Today was a gorgeous day...bright sun and clear as a bell...also 44 when we headed downstairs for a delightful breakfast at the White Horse Inn. After a leisurely breakfast we loaded our bikes and headed into Burlington. Our plan was to ride the 27 miles beginning at Oakledge Park only to discover the trailhead at the park was closed as were the three miles to the Burlington waterfront. They are rebuilding this section of the trail and it will be outstanding when the construction is completed by year end.
We successfully parked at the waterfront without needing to find a 12 year old to help us with the parking kiosk!
For the first ten miles the Island Trail runs mostly along the eastern shore of Lake Champlain. Within moments of jumping on our bikes we were off taking pictures of some amazing views.
A short distance outside of Burlington we crossed a bridge over the Winooski River.
We kept moving because we were excited about reaching the real gem of this ride...riding on Lake Champlain. Well, not literally. The final 2.8 miles of the outbound leg takes you onto the Colchester Causeway. The Causeway was built in 1899 as the rail bed connecting Colchester and South Hero. The Causeway is now a 2.8 mile leg of the Island Trail that takes you out into Lake Champlain. You feel as if you are biking in the middle of the Lake. The views were stunning on a day like today.
The Causeway was constructed of miles of marble blocks dumped into the Lake as the foundation for the rail bed. I can't begin to imagine just how much marble was used to provide this one of a kind experience.
We took a moment to enjoy reaching to end of this part of the Causeway.
There is a break in the Causeway. If you are committed to riding the entire Causeway, not to worry. A bike ferry can transport you around the break and you can bike the final 1.2 miles into South Hero. Not an option today since the bike ferry does not operate during the week after Labor Day.
We retraced our ride back to Burlington, packed up and headed to Waitsville. It was a truly outstanding ride but we were a bit disappointed about not be able to do the full 27 miles. As two fully functioning adults we decided there was only one thing to do...Ben & Jerrys.
| Heart | 2 | Comment | 0 | Link |
Tomorrow we are off on our last day in VT. We will explore two sections of what will eventually become the longest rail trail in VT.
Today's ride: 21 miles (34 km)
Total: 80 miles (129 km)
| Rate this entry's writing | Heart | 2 |
| Comment on this entry | Comment | 0 |